Everything was quiet.
But Li Pingsheng suddenly opened his eyes.
There was no killing intent, no footsteps, and he couldn't hear anyone breathing.
But something felt wrong.
There was an unfamiliar smell on the wind, the scent of rust mixed with human blood.
Li Pingsheng felt someone watching him from the shadows.
Someone had come, and they were after him.
He stretched, loosening his joints, and muttered, "The air's so stuffy today. I can't even sleep."
With that, Li Pingsheng pushed open the door and sauntered out of the courtyard, hoping to get some air.
Outside the courtyard, two shadows stood motionless in the darkness beside the wall.
Seeing Li Pingsheng stroll out so carelessly, both men wore mocking expressions.
A genius?
A fist intent that had just taken shape?
In front of professional killers like them, he was just an inexperienced brat.
At last, Li Pingsheng stopped beneath an old locust tree outside the courtyard.
The area was open and secluded, far from the courtyards of the other True Disciples.
It was the perfect place to strike.
The two assassins exchanged a glance and silently followed him.
With his back to them, Li Pingsheng was examining the weeds on the ground.
The opportunity had come.
The two men burst out of the shadows at once, one from either side.
Li Pingsheng smiled.
"I've been waiting for you."
Before the words had left his mouth, his Wind Treading talent activated.
His figure blurred in an instant, leaving only an afterimage where he had stood.
His posture was strange as he slid three feet sideways.
The two poisoned daggers pierced the afterimage, then clashed against each other.
Their strike missed.
The assassins' pupils contracted.
How was this possible?!
Was the intelligence wrong?!
A newcomer who'd only been practicing martial arts for half a month couldn't have footwork like this.
Even the renowned experts of the Inner City might not be able to match that speed and manner of movement.
They immediately grew wary and tried to retreat, hoping to regroup and attack again.
Too late.
Li Pingsheng had already made his move. He wouldn't give them the chance.
"I just mastered a new move, and someone's come right to my door so I can test it out. How thoughtful."
His Tiger Bone talent surged to its limit.
A fierce tide of qi and blood erupted from his body, instantly transforming his aura.
His muscles and bones rang in unison, his muscles bulged, and the air around him grew hot from the force of his qi and blood.
Li Pingsheng fixed his gaze on the assassin to his left.
He pushed off with one foot. The bluestone beneath him cracked, and he lunged forward.
At the brink of life and death, the assassin forced every last drop of potential from his body.
He threw away his dagger and crossed his arms over his chest, every muscle in his body taut as he tried to take the blow head-on.
His arms had been soaked in special medicinal solutions and tempered until they were rock-hard. He was confident they could withstand ordinary swords and blades.
But the one he faced was Li Pingsheng.
This was a killing move forged from three merged thunder-based techniques.
"Thunderclap Explosion!"
Li Pingsheng clenched his right fist tight. The veins stood out along his arm, and a flash of light glimmered across his knuckles.
A dull thud rang out.
The assassin's arms were struck by Li Pingsheng's fist and snapped cleanly, their stark white bone shards piercing through the flesh.
The punch shattered the arms blocking his way, its force undiminished as it slammed into the assassin's chest.
Another dull thud. A fist-shaped crater caved into the assassin's chest.
He flew backward, slammed into the courtyard wall, and slid down it. By then, he was already dead.
One punch had killed him.
At the sight, only one thought remained in the other assassin's mind:
Run!
As far away as possible.
The young man before him wasn't human.
He turned and charged toward the courtyard wall. Pushing off with his toes, he sprang up, hoping to vault over and escape.
"Hmph. What are you thinking? You still think you can leave?"
The assassin's vision blurred. The figure that had been several yards away was suddenly right in front of him.
A hand moved so fast he couldn't even see its path, then clamped around his throat.
"Ugh..."
The assassin was lifted into the air, his legs kicking wildly. All the strength drained from his body, and his face flushed red.
He tried to fight back, but no matter how hard he struggled, the hand around his throat didn't budge.
"Sorry for the trouble, but could you tell me who sent you?"
The man in black clenched his teeth, a resolute glint flashing in his eyes.
"As a death warrior, I have professional ethics."
Li Pingsheng had no interest in dragging things out with him. He tightened his five fingers slightly.
The sound of bones shifting out of place rang out.
Pain made the assassin convulse all over. Under the terror of death and the torment, his mental defenses crumbled.
"Hey, brother, wait..."
"I may have professional ethics, but my life matters more than anything."
"I'll talk... I'll talk..."
"It was... the gang leader..." He forced the words out through his throat. "And... Zhao... Zhao Ming... he paid five hundred taels..."
Zhao Ming.
Ha. How was it him again?
Li Pingsheng's gaze turned cold, and he showed no more mercy.
"Thanks for the effort. Goodbye."
With a crisp snap, the man in black's head lolled limply to one side.
Li Pingsheng released him and let the body slide to the ground.
He crouched and searched both bodies.
Soon, from the dead man's robes, he pulled out a cold, hard object.
In the moonlight, he saw it was a jade pendant with a smooth, lustrous texture. An ancient-looking "Black" was engraved on it.
It was probably the Black Water Gang's token.
Li Pingsheng set the pendant on the grass, then pulled a small paper packet from his robes and sprinkled the white powder inside evenly over the two bodies.
The powder ate through the corpses. Before long, they had dissolved into yellow-brown bloodwater, leaving only two dark stains on the ground.
This was Corpse Dissolving Powder he'd bought at the Black Market.
Zhao Ming...
The Black Water Gang...
His original plan had been to defeat Zhao Ming at the grand examination.
But it seemed the man couldn't wait any longer.
Since the other side had broken the rules first, he couldn't be blamed for showing no mercy.
Should he go straight to Zhao Ming and kill him?
No.
It would cause too much of a stir, and he wouldn't be able to get away either.
The martial arts school had strict rules. He didn't want some good-for-nothing to hinder his path to becoming stronger.
Then he'd let the Black Water Gang kill him.
A bold plan quickly took shape in his mind.
The Black Water Gang's leader had sent two death warriors carrying a token to kill him, but the men had vanished.
What would the leader think?
He would surely assume Li Pingsheng had killed the two death warriors.
But what if... those two death warriors had died at Zhao Ming's hands?
Zhao Ming had hired assassins, then killed them to silence them, either fearing the truth would come out or wanting to keep the money for himself.
While disposing of the bodies, he'd accidentally dropped his personal token at the scene.
And Li Pingsheng had been nothing but a victim from beginning to end.
The Black Water Gang's leader would discover that his two most trusted death warriors—and their deposit—had disappeared, and find only Zhao Ming's belongings. What would he think?
That Zhao Ming had pocketed the money and killed his men.
Given the Black Water Gang's way of doing things, they would never rest until Zhao Ming was dead.
At that thought...
He'd divert the calamity elsewhere.
That was the solution.
He needed a token belonging to Zhao Ming, something that could prove his identity and was personal enough.
Li Pingsheng glanced toward the Zhao Family Estate.
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